Valençay, in Indre, main town of the canton that shares its name, is a small,
charming town of 3122 inhabitants, nestling around the château. The town is
situated 42 kms to the north of the county town of Châteauroux and 55 kms to the
south of Blois.

Arriving from Blois through the lovely Gâtine forest, a straight road leads
into one of the 2 courtyards at the château, called the " cour des Ronds "
(Courtyard of Circles).

Cour des Ronds opposite the Blois road.

(c)Pierre COMBALUZIER. No unauthorised
reproduction.

From Châteauroux, and across the Berry plains, visitors come to a high point,
overlooking the Nahon river. Crossing the gently flowing river, they arrive at
the towering château, which stands at the top of a hill.

Château tower, east side, view from the rue du Tournebride

(c)Pierre COMBALUZIER. No unauthorised reproduction.

A feudal castle stood on the site in the 13th C.

Following a marriage, the Chalons-Tonnerre became the owners.

In 1451, Robert II d'Estampes purchased the château. The d'Estampes family
remained the owners for nearly another three centuries. During this time, major
changes were made to the château.

Château de Valençay, Cour d'honneur side.

(c)Pierre COMBALUZIER. No unauthorised reproduction.

In 1509, Louis and his son Jacques d'Estampes razed the ancient feudal manor
to the ground. They built, from around 1520/1530, the current château in a
Renaissance style, following the plans of an unknown architect. The crediting of
the design to Philibert Delorme is in error.

Dominique d'Estampes built the west wing, opposite the grounds, and the east
wing, on the Valençay side, in the early 17th C. A wall of arches, enclosing the
" cour d'honneur ", links the two wings.

Mademoiselle de Montpensier, also called the " Grande Mademoiselle ", came to
Valençay in 1653. She wrote that Valençay is an " enchanting house " in her
memoirs.

LA GARENNE, the hunting cottage, built by TALLEYRAND from 1805 to 1807,
under the instruction of his architect RENARD.

The Spanish princes stayed there to hunt during their
captivity.

Later, the Duchesse de DINO chose it as her location for entertaining
and leisure.

At the end of the 17th C, the d'Estampes family lost their glory. Financial
problems forced the widow of Henri Hubert d'Estampes to sell the estate in 1719,
to the banker-speculator John Law. This sale was then cancelled due to his
bankruptcy.

Finaly, after having passed into the hands of the Chaumont de La Millière
family, the farmer-general Charles Legendre de Villemorien became the eventual
buyer of the estate in 1766. Shortly afterwards, with the aid of architect
Joseph-Abel Couture, he carried out some important modifications: demolition of
the east wing and arches, and modifications to the west wing, in particular the
building of the Tour Neuve (New Tower).

West side of the Château

(c)Pierre COMBALUZIER. No unauthorised
reproduction.

His son, the Comte Legendre de Luçay, put the finishing touches to his work
and sold the château to Talleyrand in May 1803.

Tour Neuve at the Château de Valençay dominating the Nahon
valley.

(c)Pierre COMBALUZIER. No unauthorised
reproduction.

" Monsieur de Talleyrand, I want you to purchase a good property, one where
you can receive diplomats and other notable foreigners. Guests whom we wish to
send to such a place as a reward to the ambassadors of sovereigns that I would
like to remain content... " explained the Premier Consul, who contributed a very
large part towards the acquisition of the château.

Cour Carrée (Square Court) or Cour de l'Orangerie (Orangery Court),

also
called the Jardin Français (French Garden), opposite the keep,main entrance

In May 1808, the Spanish Princes, captured at Bayonne, were put in guarded
accomodation at the Château de Valençay. They stayed there until March 1814,
after the signing of the treaty of Valençay on December 11th 1813. The treaty
gave the Spanish throne to Prince Ferdinand, despite the reserves expressed by
the Cortès.

Talleyrand-Périgord family coat of arms on the keep

(c)Pierre COMBALUZIER. No unauthorised
reproduction.

It was only in 1816, after eight years of absence, that Talleyrand returned
to Valençay. He then came nearly every year for a stay, accompanied by his
niece, the duchesse de Dino. On May 17th, 1838, the Prince de Talleyrand died in
Paris. On September 5th his remains were interred in a chapel near to the
château, following a last hommage by a united people in the funeral
cortege.

Place Talleyrand. Stone bust taken from the original by Louis Desprez (1799-1870 ou 1872),
kept in the Versailles museum.

A previous copy, first displayed in 1938, was destroyed in an attack in
February 1945.

(c)Pierre COMBALUZIER. No unauthorised
reproduction.

It was his great-nephew, Napoléon-Louis de Talleyrand-Périgord, duc de
Valençay, who inherited the estate. With the latter's death, in 1898, his
grandson, Boson, succeded him until his own death in 1952. The sole inheritor,
and last individual owner, M. Jean Morel, sold the château to an Association
Départementale (County Association) on December 15th 1979.

Saved from the Second World War, and in spite of the destruction caused to
the village itself on August 16th 1944, the Château de Valençay has kept a large
part of the furniture and items with which the prince liked to surround
himself.

Old Postcard : Prince Talleyrand's bedroom

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

Postcard : Prince Talleyrand's bedroom

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

Old Postcard : Prince Talleyrand's bedroom

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

Chromo castle of Valençay

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

Picture SNCF castle of Valençay

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

Picture of the castle - beginning XXth century

No unauthorised reproduction.

Postcard

No unauthorised reproduction.

Picture SNCF castle of Valençay

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

Engraving of castle of Valençay

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

Church of Valençay which was renovated by the prince. Postcard circa 1932

Collection Philippe Maillard. No unauthorised reproduction.

With thanks to Mssrs André BEAU and Philippe Maillard for their valuable
advice.